1. Field
A cooling apparatus is disclosed herein.
2. Background
In general, refrigerators are home appliances that provide a low-temperature storage space, which is opened or closed by a door, to store food or other items at a low temperature. In recent years, refrigerators have increased more and more in size. Also, refrigerators provide multiple functions due to trends in changes in diet and life quality, and accordingly, refrigerators having various structures in consideration of user convenience have been brought to market.
For example, consumer demands for apparatuses that quickly cool beverages, including alcoholic beverages, to under room temperature, in a short amount of time are increasing. To satisfy these demands, various types of cooling apparatuses provided in a refrigerator to quickly cool such beverages are being proposed.
However, there are several technical matters to consider in order to provide more efficient cooling apparatuses to users.
First, such a cooling apparatus may receive a plurality of items to be cooled, such as beverage cans, at once. However, in this case, a storage space of the refrigerator may be narrowed. Thus, it may be necessary to minimize reduction in storage capacity of the refrigerator due to the cooling apparatus.
According to one a cooling apparatus, which has been applied for by the present Applicant, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0011885 A1, published Jan. 19, 2012, an item to be cooled (hereinafter, referred to as a “cooled item”) is placed on a tray of the cooling apparatus in a single direction. Thus, to receive a plurality of cooled items, it may be necessary to elongate the tray. As a result, the cooling apparatus may increase in length.
As the case is increased in length, a storage compartment in which the cooling apparatus is installed may be reduced in capacity. Thus, such a cooling apparatus may not be installed in a small capacity refrigerator including a storage compartment having a short length in a front to rear direction.
In addition, when the plurality of cooled items are received end to end or in a lengthwise direction of the cooling apparatus in the front to rear direction, it may be difficult to withdraw a cooled item positioned at a relatively rear side.
A structure in which a tray is laterally expanded to receive a plurality of cooled items may be proposed. However, in this case, the storage compartment of the refrigerator, which stores food or other items, may be reduced in use capacity.
Second, a cooled item to be received in the cooling apparatus has to be efficiently cooled. In general, quick cooling in the cooling apparatus installed in a refrigerator door or a storage compartment of a cabinet may be performed by an agitating motion including supply of cool air into the cooling apparatus and rotation of the cooled object. For example, according to a cooling apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 2004-176977 A or U.S. Pat. No. 7,343,748 B, a beverage can is received in the cooling apparatus, rotated with respect to a central axis in a longitudinal direction thereof, and then, cool air is supplied into the cooling apparatus to quickly cool the beverage can.
However, in the case of an agitation mechanism, in which a rotational center or agitating center of the cooled item is a central longitudinal axis of the cooled item, even though the cooled item rotates, agitation of a liquid containing within the cooled item may not actively occur. Thus, as the cool air supplied into the cooling apparatus and the liquid with the cooled item are not smoothly heat-exchanged, a cooling time may be extended.
U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0011885 A1, which has been applied for by the present Applicant, discloses a cooling apparatus for solving the above-described limitations. In this cooling apparatus, a beverage received in the cooling apparatus does not simply rotate, but rather, is swung, that is, repeatedly reciprocated a predetermined distance on a circular arc to actively agitate the liquid. Also, cool air may be sprayed at a high speed onto a lower side of the beverage can, and the sprayed cool air may maximally collide with a circumferential surface of the beverage can to improve cooling efficiency.
However, in the case of U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0011885 A1, there are the following limitations.
FIG. 51 is a schematic view illustrating an agitation motion of a cooling apparatus according to the related art. Referring to FIG. 51, in the cooling apparatus disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2012/0011885 A1, a beverage can K, which is a cooled item, is reciprocated along a moving trace S having a circular arc shape between a first point A1 and a second point A2 using agitation axis X as a center. Cool air J is supplied onto a lower side of the beverage can.
In the case of the above-described agitation motion, during the swing motion reciprocated along the trace S in the circular arc shape, agitation of liquid contained in the beverage can K may actively occur at both ends of the trace and weakly occur at a central portion of the trace. That is, the beverage may have an inertial force that continuously ascends at a time point at which descent of the beverage can K starts at the first point A1 and the second point A2. The liquid within the beverage can K may ascend along an inner circumferential surface of the beverage can K and then drop down due to gravity and be agitated by the inertial force. However, as the beverage rotates along a moving direction of the beverage can K in one direction in a region in which the beverage can K passes through a lowest point, that is, at the central portion of the trace, the agitation may be relatively less. Also, as the cool air is concentratedly sprayed onto the central portion of the trace, at which the agitation intensity is relatively weak, it may be difficult to realize maximum cooling efficiency.
In more detail, as the beverage can K moves in a direction that approaches the first point A1 and the second point A2, the beverage can K moves out of a cooling air supply region, in which the cool air is supplied, and thus, an amount of cool air colliding with the beverage can K may be reduced. That is, a portion of the supplied cool air may not heat-exchange with the beverage can K in a portion of the region, reducing cooling efficiency.
In addition, when the moving direction of the beverage can K changes in a dropping direction of the beverage can K at the first point A1 and the second point A2, inertial forces of the beverage, the beverage can K, and a beverage holder may act as resistance to a link member for driving the beverage holder. Thus, the link member may be damaged and short-lived, and also, noise may occur during the agitation.
Also, in the case of the swing motion, a width and height of the cooling apparatus have to be designed in consideration of the trace of the cooled item. Thus, when compared to a cooling apparatus having the agitation mechanism that rotates using the central longitudinal axis of the cooled item as the agitation center, the cooling apparatus may occupy a larger space in the storage compartment of the refrigerator.